TORONTO — The look of frustration was evident in Trey Yesavage’s body language.
The right-hander left a slider in the middle of the zone to Coby Mayo and the Baltimore Orioles third baseman unleashed a vicious swing. Yesavage immediately knew it was gone, the only question being how far the blast travelled.
Yesavage sank his shoulders and, as he turned toward left field, the ball was still in the air. When it finally landed, in the front row of the second deck at Rogers Centre, it put an exclamation mark on a stunning sixth inning that altered the direction of the Toronto Blue Jays’ 13-3 loss to the Orioles in front of 41,801.
The opener of the three-game series between the AL East clubs marked their fifth matchup in the last nine days. The Orioles frustrated Yesavage by drawing seven walks against him last weekend, but in the early going on Friday, it looked like he was back to himself.
After allowing a first-inning solo home run to O’s catcher Adley Rutschman, Yesavage settled down, retiring 15 of the next 16 batters. The Blue Jays had built a 3-1 lead by the sixth and Yesavage looked poised to deliver a lengthy outing that would have been welcomed, given that the Blue Jays have yet to determine a starter for Saturday’s contest.
Jackson Holliday doubled to open the sixth frame and after striking out Taylor Ward to open the sixth, Yesavage went up 0-2 on Gunnar Henderson before it all fell apart. The Baltimore shortstop battled back in the count and eventually drew an eight-pitch walk. Rutschman followed with a two-run double, pinch-hitter Jeremiah Jackson added an RBI single and then Mayo launched his no-doubter that capped the five-run inning and ended Yesavage’s night.
In total, the rookie allowed a career-high six runs as his ERA climbed nearly a full run to 3.16. If you zoom out, it’s noticeable that the 22-year-old Yesavage is experiencing the first trying stretch of his brief, whirlwind career.
Over his past three starts, Yesavage has allowed 11 walks and 12 runs over 17.1 innings.